The Dictionary of Newfoundland English, first published in 1982 to regional, national and international acclaim, is a historical dictionary that gives the pronunciations and definitions for words that the editors have called "Newfoundland English". The varieties of English spoken in Newfoundland date back four centuries, mainly to the early seventeenth century migratory English fishermen of Cornwall, Devon, Dorset and Somerset, and to the seventeenth to the nineteenth century immigrants chiefly from south-eastern Ireland. Culled from a vast reading of books, newspapers and magazines, this book is the most sustained reading ever undertaken of the written words of this province. The dictionary gives not only the meaning of words, but also presents each word with its variant spellings. Moreover, each definition is succeeded by an all-important quotation of usage which illustrates the typical context in which word is used. This well-researched, impressive work of scholarship illustrates how words and phrases have evolved and are used in everyday speech and writing in a specific geographical area. The Dictionary of Newfoundland English is one of the most important, comprehensive and thorough works dealing with Newfoundland. Its publication, a great addition to Newfoundlandia, Canadiana and lexicography, provides more than a regional lexicon. In fact, this entertaining and delightful book presents a panoramic view of the social, cultural and natural history, as well as the geography and economics, of the quintessential lifestyle of one of Canada's oldest European-settled areas. This second edition contains a Supplement offering approximately 1500 new or expanded entries, an increase of more than 30 per cent over the first edition. Besides new words, the Supplement includes modified and additional senses of old words and fresh derivations and usages.
'Much more than a book of definitions, this dictionary is a flahoolach repository of the folklore and the folkways and even the sound and the spirit of pre-Hibernian oilfield, pre-Confederation Newfoundland. It is a book which, combined with a working fireplace, can use up your whole winter.'
- Jack Chambers - Globe and Mail
'The whimsy and joyous spirit that even an outsider sees as the defining nature of a granite island that is closer to London than to Winnipeg.'
- Kenneth Freed - Los Angeles Times
'A bracing tonic for those who fear that verbal sophistication in Canada has peaked with the McKenzie Brothers. And it is a book that can knock you off your tawt with laughter one moment and glaum you in wonder the next.'
- Maclean's
'A majestic work of scholarship ... It illustrates perfectly the way that language evolves to fit historical and geographical circumstances ... Splendid.'
- Philip Howard - The Times
'To everyone who loves words, it will be a treasure-house. It's one of those rare books that combine consummate scholarship with a sense of fun and emotional commitment.'
- Sandra Gwynn - Saturday Night
